The present invention relates to data processing by digital computer, and more particularly to representing hierarchical list data.
The term list data refers to data that is organized as a list. A list is a data structure that holds data in a sequential order. Lists are often stored using a cell and pointer arrangement where each value is stored in a cell along with an associated pointer to the next cell.
The term hierarchical list data refers to list data where at least one of the elements in the list is itself a list. A list within a list is known as a nested list. Hierarchical list data can include more than one level of nesting. For example, a nested list can contain yet another nested list as one of its elements.
Business and other types of data often include hierarchical list data. The manner in which hierarchical list data is organized and represented can affect the amount of memory required to store such data, as well as the amount of time required to access and process the data.